If we look at the current landscape of early stage Investing, we find: A Diversity Challenge. So the question is, can we bridge the Gender Gap in Business Angel Investing? Business Angel investing plays a vital role in fueling innovation across Europe. Yet, it remains strikingly homogeneous, especially in terms of gender and age. Women constitute only about 14-15% of business angel investors, while younger investors are also significantly underrepresented according to ESIL (Early Stage Investing Launchpad). This lack of diversity narrows perspectives within the investment ecosystem and influences which entrepreneurs receive vital early-stage support.
Research and experience show that diverse investor communities foster stronger, more innovative outcomes. Jenny Tooth OBE, a leading advocate for inclusion in angel investing, highlights that women investors tend to support female founder at disproportionately higher rates—often allocating 30-60% of their investments to women-led ventures. This creates a powerful positive feedback loop that addresses the persistent gender gap in entrepreneurship.
Similarly, younger angels bring fresh outlooks, digital fluency, and a readiness to engage with emerging technologies—qualities essential to driving the next wave of European tech and deep tech startups. Increasing gender and age diversity among investors therefore expands the breadth of expertise, networks, and capital sources, strengthening the resilience and dynamism of the entire ecosystem.
Barriers to Participation: Why Diversity Lags
Women and younger potential investors face persistent obstacles. Limited access to established networks, lack of visibility of role models, and insufficient awareness about business angel investing opportunities keep many from participating fully. Jenny Tooth emphasises that overcoming these barriers requires targeted efforts such as mentorship, education, and community-building.
She recommends that aspiring women angels join syndicates, participate in tailored training programmes, and co-invest with experienced peers. These strategies build confidence, reduce risk, and provide access to traditionally exclusive networks.
Strategic Solutions: Building Inclusive Investment Communities
To tackle these challenges, ESIL has taken a multifaceted approach and:
- Build syndicates and peer mentorship networks to foster collaboration and confidence.
- Developed comprehensive e-learning platforms and standardised cross-border investment documentation to empower women and younger investors.
- Facilitated partnerships among business angels, crowdfunding platforms, incubators, and accelerators through initiatives like EuroQuity.
Given the complexity of socio-economic frameworks and gender bias, this effort cannot lead to societal change alone. Rather, we need to consider how to multiply and extend opportunities for different ages and genders by reducing barriers to access.
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Crowdfunding: A Gateway to Broader Inclusion?
Crowdfunding plays a crucial complementary role in democratizing early-stage investment. Lower financial thresholds and open access enable broader participation, especially from women and younger investors who may find traditional business angel investing inaccessible. According to a 2022 European survey by Statista, women comprised only 18% to 27% of equity crowdfunding investors across various regions, not yet equal to male investors, but significantly higher than in business angel investing. In non-investment crowdfunding models women backers already often exceed 50%.
Moreover, the European Crowdfunding Service Providers Regulation (ECSPR) harmonises crowdfunding rules across EU member states, simplifying cross-border investments and further expanding opportunities for underrepresented groups.
Crowdfunding platforms also include investor protection measures mandated by regulation—these barriers are designed for consumer safety, not based on gender, and may still present challenges to all newcomers irrespective of gender. Signing up is also a digital act, rather than a physical effort as it is often with business angel clubs, which might help explain the somewhat higher participation rate in crowdfunding.
By combining the specialist expertise and strategic networks of business angels with the inclusivity and scale of crowdfunding platforms, Europe’s investment ecosystem becomes more robust, resilient, and innovative.
Towards a More Diverse, Dynamic Future
Increasing gender and age diversity among investors is not just a fairness issue—it’s an economic imperative. A more diverse investor base drives a broader and richer deal flow, amplifies support for underrepresented founders, and fosters innovation that better reflects society’s needs.
However, the gender disparity is even more pronounced when examining the funding outcomes for women entrepreneurs. Women-led startups receive significantly less funding from male business angels. Specifically, women entrepreneurs have a 20% lower likelihood of securing larger-than-median investments from male investors compared to their male counterparts, according to research published in the Entrepreneurship Research Journal (Andrea Bellucci, Gianluca Gucciardi, Rossella Locatelli and Cristiana-Maria Schena: Gender Gap in Business Angel Financing, 22 May 2024).
While equity crowdfunding platforms have lower barriers to entry and offer a more accessible means for women to engage in investment, the overall female participation remains somewhat modest. Traditional angel investing continues to be dominated by male investors, with women constituting a small minority. Therefore, while equity crowdfunding presents a promising avenue for increasing female participation in investment, it is not yet a panacea for the gender disparities prevalent in the investment landscape.
To foster a more inclusive investment ecosystem, it is essential to continue efforts aimed at reducing biases, providing targeted education and mentorship, and creating supportive networks for women investors. Such initiatives will be crucial in bridging the gender gap in both equity crowdfunding and traditional angel investing.
Initiatives like ESIL (Early Stage Investing Launchpad), in collaboration with EUROCROWD, are catalyzing a new generation of diverse investors—more inclusive, confident, and connected. Through targeted education, mentorship, and community-building, they are unlocking untapped capital and transforming Europe’s early-stage investment ecosystem.
Want to know more about becoming a Business Angel? Find out more at European ESIL
Additional sources:
- Jenny Tooth, OBE, on Diversity: Driving Gender Equality in Angel Investing
- Diversity and inclusion in angel investing: A Summary
About European ESIL
ESIL is dedicated to boosting Europe’s innovative ecosystems through the creation of a thriving, connected and diverse angel investment community across all the countries of Europe. The programme is managed by:
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